Foam injection sprinkler system



H. N. RIDER FOAM INJECTION SPRINKLER SYSTEM Filed Jan. 25, 1950 March 25, 1952 INVENTOR. Harry M P/o er.

Patented Mar. 25, 1952 FOAM INJECTION SPRINKLER SYSTEM Harry N. Rider, Youngstown, Ohio, assignor to Automatic Sprinkler Corporation of America, Youngstown, Ohio, a corporation of Delaware Application January 25, 1950, Serial No. 140,421

Claims.

1 This invention relates to a sprinkler system of the fire extinguishing type and more particularly to a sprinkler system having means for injecting foam liquid into the sprinkler system.

The principal object of the invention is the provision of a foam injecting sprinkler system.

A further object of the'invention is the provision of a spinrkler system having automatically actuated dual valves controlling a water supply source and a foam liquid source.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of a sprinkler system having foam injecting means therefor responsive in operation to the actuation of the said sprinkler system.

The foam injection sprinkler system shown and described herein comprises an improvement in the art of automatic sprinkler systems in that an entire automatic sprinkler system as heretofore known in the art has been adapted for the delivery of fire extinguishing foam through the incorporation therewith of novel means for controlling and injecting foam liquid into the sprinkler system when the same is actuated as by fire.

The fire protection art has employed automatic sprinkler systems utilizing water as a fire extinguishing agent and many and various forms of sprinkler systems, control valves and the like have been proposed for the automatic actuation of such sprinkler systems. In recent years fire extinguishing foam has been developed for local application to specific hazards such as volatile liquids and more particularly to apparatus or areas in which volatile liquids or readily cornbustible materials are processed, stored or used. The relatively local application of such fire extinguishing foams has been due to the inability to successfully introduce the foam materials into an automatic sprinkler system covering a relatively large area and the present invention, therefore, has as one of its objects the solution of this problem and the successful introduction of foam liquid and foam liquid concentrates into a system in conjunction with an ordinary water supply introduced thereinto to the end that large areas may be protected by the fire extinguishing foam as delivered from the sprinkler system and through open or deflector type sprinklers thereon.

With the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed can be made within the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein:

The figure is a plan View with parts broken away and parts in cross section illustrating the foam injection sprinkler system.

By referring to the drawing it will be seen that an automatic sprinkler system has been disclosed and comprises a riser Ill communicating with a water supply source H by way of an automatic valve I2 and an OS&Y valve I3. The OS&Y valve I3 is normally open and water from the water supply II is in communication with the automatic valve I2 and normally controlled by a clapper I4 so that it cannot enter the riser I0. The riser III extends into the fire area to be protected and has distributing apipes I5 which in turn communicate with open or deflector sprinklers I6. The automatic valve I2 is held in closed position by a latch I! which is operated by a lever I8 which in turn is actuated by a weight I9 which is sliclably positioned on a rod 20. The lower end of the rod 20 is pivotally attached to the free end of the lever I8 and automatic pressure responsive release means 2| (not shown) is used to normally suspend the weight I9 in elevated relation with respect to the lever I8. The pressure responsive release means 2| is subject in operation, as is known in the art, to pneumatic thermostats or heat actuated devices 22 located in the fire zone and in communication with the pressure responsive release means by way of pneumatic tubing 23. It will thus be seen that fire in the area supervised by the heat actuated devices 22 will operate th pressure responsive release means 2|, release the weight I9 which will then move the lever I8 and the latch I'I thereby freeing the clapper I4 and permitting the water from the supply source II to flow upwardly into the automatic valve I2 and into the riser I0 and distributing piping I5 of the sprinkler system. The weight I9 also serves to hold a switch 24 in open circuit position and an electrical circuit comprising wires 25 and including a power source 26 is thus subject to energization upon dropping of the weight I9 of the closing of the switch 24.

In order that the sprinkler system thus disclosed can be adapted for the distribution of fire extinguishing foam in the fire area supervised by the sprinkler system, means is provided for introducing a desirable foam liquid into the riser I U of the sprinkler system where it will mix with the water from the supply source l'l flowing into the riser III, as heretofore described, and result in fire extinguishing foam being discharged from the plurality of open sprinklers or deflectors [6 in communication with the distributing piping l9 and the riser H] as heretofore described.

The foam liquid supply source is indicated by the numeral 21 in the drawing and will obviously comprise a tank and pump for supplying a sufficient quantity of foam liquid or foam liquid concentrate to the sprinkler system with a suitable quantity of foam liquid or foam liquid concentrate for the maximum time the sprinkler system will operate in extinguishing any fire in the area supervised. The source of supply of foam liquid is controlled by a secondary OS&Y valve 28 and a secondary automatic valve 29 which includes a clapper 3!) normally held in closed position by a latch 3! which in turn is afiixed to a lever 32.

The outer end of the lever 32 is-pivotally affixed to a guide rod 33 and a secondary weight 34 is mounted on the guide rod 33 and held in elevated relation by an electrically actuated latch 35. The circuit wires 25 heretofore referred to in connection with the switch 24 and the power source 26 extend to and communicate with the electrically actuated latch 35 so that the weight 34 may be released upon actuation of the latch 35 by the introduction of an electrical circuit therethrough as occasioned by the closing of the switch 24 responsive to the drop-ping of the weight 19 as heretofore described.

The automatic valve 29 communicates with the riser 10 by Way of piping 36 which incorporates a check valve 3'! permitting flow from the piping as to the riser m but preventing flow from the riser ii) to the piping 36. It will thus be obvious to those skilled in the art that a suitable supply source of foam liquid or foam liquid concentrate is placed in automatic communication with the riser ll! of the sprinkler system upon the actuation of the sprinkler system as from fire in the fire zone. It will also be obvious to those skilled in the art that the injection of foam liquid or foam liquid concentrate into the sprinkler system is entirely dependent upon the actuation of the sprinkler system so that it is impossible to accidentally release foam liquid or foam liquid concentrate into the sprinkler system riser l6 until and unless the sprinkler system is functioning and water is flowing from the supply source ll through the automatic valve l2 and into the riser l and distributing piping 15. Under such conditions the injection of the foam liquid into the riser results in the generation of foam it being obvious that the amount of foam liquid introduced into the riser Iii will be directly related to the volume of water flowing therethrough to the end that foam properly mixed and of proper consistency will be delivered through the distributing piping through the plurality of open sprinklers and thus discharged in the fire area to extin uish a fire therein.

The foam injection sprinkler system will thus be seen to meet the several requirements of the insurance underwriters having jurisdiction in such matters in that it at no time interferes with the normal operation of the sprinkler system but rather is subject to such operation and operations in conjunction therewith to the end that fires in hazardous locations may be more quickly and thoroughly controlled and extinguished and the necessity of portable foam generating epparatus being used for rapid and effective foam application eliminated.

It will thus be seen that the several objects of the invention are met by the foam injection sprinkler system incorporating a dual valve control which dual valves are responsive one to the other and both of which are responsive to previous actuation of the pneumatic thermostats in the fire zone.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1 A foam injection sprinkler system comprising in combination a single system of distributing piping having open sprinklers thereon and a water supply source and a foam liquid supply source in communication therewith in spaced relation to the sprinklers, and a pair of automatic valves, one normally controlling the said water supply source and one normally controlling the foam liquid supply source, heat actuated devices in a fire zone, the said automatic valve controlling the water supply source being responsive in operation to action of the said heat actuated devices and opened thereby, and actuating means interconnecting the said automatic valves, the automatic valve controlling the foam liquid supply source being responsive in operation to the operation of the said water controlling automatic valve and thereby opened after opening of the water controlling valve.

2. A foam injection sprinkler system comprising in combination a single system of distributing piping having open sprinklers thereon and a water supply source and a foam liquid supply source in communication therewith communicating with the piping in advance of the sprinklers, a normally closed automatic valve in the said water supply source and a normally closed automaitc valve in the said foam liquid supply source, heat responsive means in the fire zone for opening the automatic valve in the water supply source, and actuating means associated with the said automatic valve in the water supply source and responsive to the operation thereof for effecting opening of the said automatic valve in the foam liquid supply source after opening of the valve in the water supply source whereby foam liquid and water are delivered to the distributing piping and intermingled while flowing through the piping to the open sprinklers.

3. The combination of an automatic sprinkler system including a single system of distributing piping in a fire zone in communication with a water supply source and a normally closed automatic valve in said supply source, and means for generating foam in the said sprinkler system and delivering it to the said distributing piping in advance of the outlet for the piping, said means comprising a source of foam liquid and secondary piping establishing communication between the said source of foam liquid and the said distributing piping intermediate the length of the distributing piping and a normally closed secondary automatic valve in said secondary piping, a member preventing intermingling of water and foam liquid except when water is flowing through the piping, heat actuated devices in a fire zone and the automatic valve in the piping being responsive in operation to said heat actuated devices, and the secondary automatic valve being responsive in operation to the opening of the said automatic valve and opened after the same whereby foam liquid is introduced into water fiowing through the distributing piping to generate foam.

4. The foam injection sprinkler system set forth in claim 1 wherein the actuating means interconnecting the said automatic valves comprises an electrical circuit including a switch closed during opening of the water control valve and a solenoid controlled latch normally preventing opening of the valve for the foam liquid source and moved to a releasing position when the circuit is closed.

5. A foam injection sprinkler system formed in accordance with claim 1 and wherein a check valve separates the said foam liquid supply source from the distributing piping to permit flow only from the foam supply source to the distributing piping.

HARRY N. RIDER.

REFERENCES CllTED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number 

